Following a Bloomberg report that Sony will no longer be publishing first-party PS5 games on PC, which suggested the decision was driven in part by poor sales for recent titles released on a platform, an analysis by Newzoo for GamesIndustry.biz has suggested the company’s release strategy limited its reach on PC.
The company’s strategy of releasing PC ports well after the PS5 release – save for the notable exception of 2024 hit Helldivers 2 – lead to lower audience share on PC compared to games that released on multiple platforms simultaneously, the firm said. The trend applied to all publishers, not just Sony.
“Newzoo’s data shows that PlayStation titles ported to PC after their console launch typically see PC account for around 13% of total players in the first three months across both releases,” says Manu Rosier, Director of Market Intelligence at Newzoo. “By comparison, when comparable AAA titles launch simultaneously on PC and console, PC contributes closer to 44% of players in the same period.”
“What’s notable is that this pattern is not specific to Sony’s first-party portfolio. We see almost no difference between first-party PlayStation titles (12% PC share) and third-party PlayStation exclusives (13%), suggesting the outcome is primarily driven by the staggered release strategy rather than franchise demand on PC.”
“When a PC version arrives years after the console launch, much of the early lifecycle demand has already been captured on the primary platform.”
The data indicated a declining audience share on PC for Sony’s first-party titles, with more recent releases seeing declines over prior franchise updates.
“Looking at individual titles, the earlier wave of PlayStation PC releases captured relatively strong player shares on the platform,” says Rosier. “Horizon Zero Dawn reached a 22% PC share (~4M lifetime players), God of War (2018) 14% (~3.5M), and Marvel’s Spider-Man 14% (~3.8M).”
“More recent ports have generally seen smaller PC shares, including Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart (8%), Horizon Forbidden West (7%), God of War Ragnarök (6%), and Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 (5%). Ghost of Tsushima is a notable exception at 11% PC share (~2.1M players), likely supported by being the franchise’s first PC release.”
“The key takeaway is that release timing has a significant impact on PC engagement. When a PC version arrives years after the console launch, much of the early lifecycle demand has already been captured on the primary platform.”
Sony’s reported strategy change, which the firm has yet to comment on, arrives alongside the leadership shakeup at Xbox which may herald a shift in release strategy. The firm’s studio lead Craig Duncan has previously said the firm was aiming to be “more consistent” in releasing first-party titles across multiple platforms simultaneously, and the firm announced yesterday that the next Xbox console would also play PC games.
